Door Number Three
by Vxrgo
Summary: Life is just funny that way. Sometimes, you reflect on the choices made and realize that you've cornered yourself. It's easy to think that your adventure is coming to an end, one or way or another, but that isn't always case. Things may become difficult, but that is not excuse to leave your story unfinished. There is always a way out- if you look hard enough.
1. 1- Silver

It was easy for him to say that he always kept his eyes peeled in a bustling place like Goldenrod City; one could never know what was waiting for them around the corner of a shady alleyway, or whether the person they passed was a pickpocket. Silver hadn't even stuck his hand in the fire willingly, yet he was burned so intensely in the past that his observatory nature was only sharpened... A few people who had managed to grow closer and pry him open a little more considered such behavior to be bordering paranoia. It was understandable, but it wasn't like he expected anyone else to understand his thought process.

His senses were drowned out by the sights and sounds of the urban area: People passing by in large packs, car engines and horns, the cries of tamed pokemon following their trainers. It was almost as if he had unintentionally let his guard down for a rare moment... However, Silver could feel himself snap to attention like a loaded spring when he felt something touch his shoulder; a hand had emerged from the dim alleyway he was passing, pulling him back and causing him to stumble. The red-haired trainer immediately responded by jabbing his elbow blindly at the stranger. He was relieved when they released them and regained his balance, turning to face his attacker. "If you're going to fight me, why don't you face me instead of hiding in the shadows like a coward?" His threat came in the form of a low growl, silver eyes narrowed as they focused on the shape that emerged a moment later.

Immediately, he recognized the woman that stood before him; her arm was wrapped around her upper midsection, and she grunted a bit from the pain of her newest injury. It was obvious to Silver that his action of defense was not the first. Her right shoulder was darkened from heavy bruising, visible from her loose cold shoulder top, and he could have sworn that he caught the color of blood on her hand. "Please, quiet down. You never know who's listening..."

"Ellie, what are you doing? What happened and why did you feel the need to grab me like that?" While Silver's expression had softened into something that could be considered less hostile, one could easily assume that he couldn't care less about the situation. In truth, he was _somewhat_ concerned even if he didn't _want_ to be. It had been about three months since he had last seen Ellie. He remembered quite clearly that she asked directions to a used bookstore, claimed that she could find it herself, and then had left without any further traces of her presence. Silver just assumed that she had done what she had come to Johto to accomplish and left, but it was obvious that the situation was more... Complex. He reminded himself that things were almost never what they seemed, and that assuming that the situation was black and white was a foolish move.

"Shhhh, she'll hear you... And find me." The sandy brunette's tone was quiet and grim, tilting her head upward to look the redhead directly in the eyes... He had never seen eyes as pale as his before he encountered this girl. There was always a quality about her gaze that just made him feel pierced when they focused on him; before, the gray was pleasantly cool and somewhat refreshing. Silver didn't feel the same way as before, and her gaze could be compared to cold metal- much like a sharp knife. It seemed like Ellie was always better at conveying her feelings through her eyes, and the slight chill that he experienced when retaining eye contact was not coincidental "I-I... I'm in trouble. I can't go to the police either, and I have no clue what to do. She's just too good. I saw you walking by, and..."

The taller trainer raised an eyebrow in befuddlement. What kind of 'trouble' could someone like Ellie find herself in? From what he knew of her, she appeared to be pretty normal; Silver perceived her as nothing more than a 'pretty-skilled', insecure yet sarcastic trainer with a slight coffee addiction. It was like she had nothing to hide... Or, she was just that good at hiding things from other people. Silver considered himself to be decently skilled at breaking people open, observing their mannerisms and paying attention to their words; he always wanted to get to the bottom of things and stay two steps ahead. If he couldn't find a hint of anything beyond this typical Kalosian girl, then how many layers did this particular trainer have? However, he found himself growing rather impatient with her hesitation. "Can you just get to the point? Who is 'she?' And what do you think I can do to solver whatever problem you have?"

"Honestly, if I had other options then I wouldn't even bother getting you involved... But you know, I know literally no one else in Johto well enough to ask," the woman replied shakily, "I know this is really sudden and we've only spent a few times together... But, I really need your help. I have someone after me, and I can't handle her by myself. She's too strong, and I'm... I-I'm honestly scared... I'm throwing away my dignity and practically begging you, Silver... Please..."


	2. 2- Ellie

The pleasantly mild summer day was coming to a close, the sun gradually sinking in the sky; there was not even a cloud to be seen, and it was still rather warm despite the dimming sunshine. It seemed that the fine weather had managed to lure people within the city outside, visitor and resident alike. One could barely see the laid golden bricks, which would appear to have an orange hue to them in the lighting, underneath of the crowd's feet as they drifted around in one chaotic sea. Ellie, much to her own frustration, was drifting among the ocean of strangers, pushing and shoving lightly, muttering 'excuse me' more times that she could count. It was both easy and difficult to understand the appeal of a sleepless city, though there was no time ponder such unimportant matters.

The girl's fingers gently brushed some dull sandy brown stands out of her line of sight, proceeding to absently push her long hair back as her eyes remained fixed on one of the many storefronts in Goldenrod City. "This has to be the place..." The trainer's voice was nothing more than a whisper, though it was obvious that her accompanying pokemon had heard her. The Lucario at her side gave a mild growl in response, crimson eyes flickering from Ellie to the storefront. However, he remained silent. "I just can't believe I'm actually doing this..."

Leaning against the wall of the building and continuing to keep her gaze focused on the mom and pop shop, Ellie waited silently for the old bookstore to finally close up. It was almost that time, she could tell, because they closed at seven in the evening; it was only ten minutes short of that. The lights eventually flickered out and she watched the employees leave through the front door as they always did. Ellie's breath hitched slightly and she couldn't help but feel her heart pound from the anticipation. The very last employee slipped through the door frame and locked the door in one swift motion, just as she _always_ had. It was definitely her.

Ellie's mind was practically screaming at her: 'Go back! This is a terrible idea! Don't do this!' However, she felt her feet bringing herself closer to the woman casually walking down at the street, a Jolteon following her happily. She had come too far, exhausting every last one of her resources; this was it. "E-excuse me..." The younger trainer called out weakly, coming to a stop while leaving a bit space between them. Ellie folded her hands neatly in front of her and her Lucario lingered at the girl's side. She watched as the middle-aged woman turned around to face her, almost loosing her ability to speak in the process. "You're Marie Crossdale... Right?"

"That depends, young lady. Who wants to know?" The woman pulled her ruby red lips in a small yet tight smile, a pair of crisp blue eyes staring at the girl before her.

In that moment, Ellie's suspicions were confirmed. No matter that the stranger's face resembled hers: the round shape of it, the pinkish-ivory skin tone, the very slight curve of her nose, even the color of her partially-graying hair was the same shade of brown- albeit the woman was considerably thinner than Ellie. However, she continued on with the conversation as if everything was normal- even if her entire body felt like it just wanted to crumple under the weight of the situation. "My name is Elizabeth Crossdale... You should remember me now, right?" There was a silence that fell upon them and it felt like the longest two minutes of her life.

"Elizabeth..." The expression with Marie's face softened, the smiling widening slightly as she beckoned the younger girl forward. "My daughter, what are you doing here?" The astonishment, while not present within the wrinkles of her face, was visible within her eyes. Marie approached her daughter and suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace.

"I came to find you..." Ellie was sure to return the hug, feeling the warmth from the closeness; it was amazing to think that her mother was right here, yet she reminded herself that this was not _real_.

This was not the same woman Ellie had known when she was twelve, and even then Marie was always more than she appeared to be.

The apartment that her mother called 'home' was small, as to be expected in a city of such size, the walls washed in a cleansing white while the floor was covered by cool gray carpeting. The majority of the space seemed to be one room with a joint kitchen that had a patch linoleum flooring and a small hallway, two white doors located near the end; it was probably the bedroom and bathroom if Ellie had to guess. The apartment was sparsely furnished, though the furniture present was of a high quality and a had a very sleek, modern appearance.

Ellie had previously been seated on the storm gray sofa in the living area, just as she had been instructed by her mother, but was currently standing at a black desk nearby. Marie explained that she needed to change her clothes and then shut herself in the bedroom, leaving Ellie to sit in silence and await her return. The opportunity was absolutely golden and the girl was quick to start searching for the evidence that she came for- that she needed. Her hands quietly shifted through the papers and she couldn't help but cringe every time the rustle of the documents was audible; she knew exactly what she was looking for, but if only it could actually be found. The trainer's heart was ready to leap out of her throat and she could see her hands visibly shaking.

Upon hearing a sound, something much like a soft bang on a wall, Ellie immediately turned around yet knocking over the desk lamp in the process. She could feel herself tense more, as if she had felt pain inflicted by the object being thrown at her. The door was fling open and the woman emerged so swiftly that it was almost like she just appeared out of thin air. "What?" Her eyes focused on her daughter, who was incredibly frightened upon being caught. It was only a moment later that Marie had erupted into a rage. The anger was plastered across her face, plain as day, and there was no hesitation in her command. Ellie knew that the woman was aware of her plan- or at least had jumped to that conclusion. "Wattson! Take care of the traitor!"

The Jolteon slipped out from behind his trainer's legs, his fur sparking wildly as he rushed towards the girl. Ellie reflexively attempted to slip away but there was no chance of outrunning such a fast pokemon; she thanked Arceus that her Lucario was able to intercept the Electric Type with only a second to spare. Wattson was sent flying back after being stricken by a stream of energy in the form of a bone-shaped staff- Bone Rush. The Jolteon barely seemed bothered by the attack despite its type effectiveness, and was charging at the two once again.

That was when Ellie realized that she was overwhelmed by the power of this woman, that her pokemon were so finely trained that it likely equaled that of a skilled Champion. "Sky, Bone Rush again!" She called, though the feigned confidence that was usually present during a battle was completely absent. It was replaced by fear... Fear for her own life, and the life of her pokemon. The Lucario was able to keep Wattson occupied for the time being, for how long was not certain. Ellie's pokemon were strong, but this was strength that she had _never_ encountered.

Her mind was racing as she tried to figure a way out. There was only one exit to this apartment that was two stories high: The stairs that were currently blocked by the battle. It rattled the space, knocking over what little furniture occupied it, and Ellie was forced into the corner while her mother was standing in the opening of the hallway. Everything was passing by at an incredible speed and her eyes were focused on the conflict between the two canine-like pokemon. She hadn't even noticed her mother sending out another pokemon in her direction, slamming her back against the wall and using its vicegrip claws to pin her shoulders.

One look at the pokemon was enough to make her scream, frozen with fright upon seeing the creature. _Scizor..._ Ellie loved all pokemon dearly, but bug pokemon were ones that she preferred to admire from a distance... A very, very large distance. Bug pokemon have been a crippling fear since she was nothing more than a small child, the very feel and sight caused her squirm and writhe: Fight or flight, it didn't matter. Whichever could get away from this horrid creature. "STOP THIS! STOP! STOP!" The girl had never been one to scream, but these was nothing that she could do pinned in place with immeasurable strength. Perhaps, someone would hear her and help. There had to be other residents living around this place.

"My dear, no one will hear you or any of this... Everyone who lives in this area will pretend that they don't. They're all on my side," the middle-aged sneered, watching as the Lucario's form went limp after being shocked; there was no doubt Sky had fainted. "Ah, good. Thank you Wattson." The Jolteon replied with a proud cry, and Marie slowly approached the couch where Ellie's bag had been set. She snatched it with one swift movement and tossed it into the hallway. "I'll have to look at those later. I have a feeling that you have some prizes on you. They could fetch a good penny if they're anything like that Lucario."

Ellie's face was red, both due to the anger that boiled inside of her and the fact that she had broken into a fit of tears. They continued to roll down her cheeks as she tried and failed to resist, slip away. But it only pained her when she attempted anything, so she was left to look at the woman through vision blurred by her tears. "Why..."

"Sometimes, there are choices that we have to make in this world. They may not be paths that we want to travel, but a person's situation may prevent them from going anywhere else. None of my others paths would lead anywhere, so I took the offer that I was presented by someone," Marie explained, her expression having changed during the conversation. It was no longer smug, but there was hardness etched within her features. Even her tone of voice had transformed into something lifeless and grim. "Nearly thirty years later, I stand here now."

There was nothing that Ellie could say, or would say. She considered herself to be dead where she stood, outwitted and trapped because she was foolish. Why did she even think that this was a remote possibility, that she could be quicker than someone who relied on cleverness for success- someone that the _police_ could not even find. "Just... Do whatever you're gonna do, I guess..."

"Well, because you are my daughter... I'll present you with two doors to walk through. Choices are a part of life, after all." Marie stepped closer to the girl, her features never shifting. "Door Number One: I kill you right here, and it's all over with. You can probably guess what happens to your pokemon; you're pretty smart, considering that you've gotten this far. Most people are dead not far from where we first meet... Door Number Two: You live and keep your pokemon, but you're simply not allowed to leave. You become my partner and assist me with work, which you seem to be aware of my profession."

"Poaching... Pokemon poaching..." Ellie hissed back.

Marie nodded in response. "Correct. Now, I leave your fate in your own hands. Choose your door wisely."


	3. 3- Ellie

Days had turned into weeks and weeks had become months, and eventually Ellie had lost all desire to keep track of time; she had a vague idea of what time of year it was, likely somewhere in September by now. The air was beginning to feel cool and crisp at night, just as it was now, which indicated that Autumn approaching. The sky was void of practically all color, though it was covered with a blanket of twinkling stars and was dotted with a luminous full moon. Thank god that the sky was clear tonight, or there would be even less light within the world around her. Even if moonlight wasn't of much help in this particular situation, the sight of it was somehow... Comforting.

The narrow alleyway that Ellie was currently traversing was cloaked in nothing but opaque shadows, the only bright light present coming from the flashlight that remained in the girl's tight grip. Even so, it was still difficult to tell what lay beyond a few feet and it made her feel rather apprehensive; not knowing what was ahead meant that she could be walking blindly into danger. However, the girl was quick to remind herself that whatever she could encounter paled in comparison to her potential fate- provided that her mother was able to locate her after noticing her disappearance. It certainly wouldn't be all that long, and Ellie could only assume that her life would be in greater danger when the sun rose again.

Despite the fact that her Delphox was able to hypnotize Marie and push her into a deep sleep, it would surely not last long enough to escape Goldenrod; the poacher's apartment was located in the heart of the city, nestled in an area known for housing criminals. Marie, as it had turned out, had not been bluffing about the locals remaining on the poacher's side. It was likely that her mother had even recruited a few individuals to keep watch in case Ellie had slipped through her fingers.

Of course, that matter was the absolute least of her worries. The trainer was lost within her own mind while considering what her options were. Going to the police was completely out of the question; Ellie hated to admit that she had done some things that would be frowned upon the by the law, even if it was done more against her will than anything. Her personal connections were limited in general, but there was absolutely no one in Johto that came to mind; much of the region was like uncharted territory and this left the girl at a great disadvantage.

Most of the night consisted of weaving through unfamiliar alleyways and trying to locate landmarks from her memory. Dawn had arrived soon enough, and Ellie had managed to stumble upon one of the main streets of the city; it was laid in golden bricks that shone brightly in the fresh daylight. The smell of savory breakfast food wafted into the nearby alleyway from one of the restaurants, and the girl's mouth watered with temptation. All of her willpower was focused on resisting; she needed to remain hidden, whether it was in an alleyway or surfing in the sea of wandering citizens. Being seen or unseen by the wrong person meant the difference between life and death.

Ellie's pale eyes scanned the wide golden road from the alley's entrances, watching as people and tamed pokemon passed by without giving her a glance. They were likely too consumed with their own lives to even notice... It wasn't like she actually cared about what they were doing, but was simply buying herself some time to think of her next move; there certainly weren't many options to begin with. However, the sandy-haired girl's train of thought was interrupted when her gaze caught sight of something vague familiar: A splash of crimson hair and a black coat approaching her hiding spot. Ellie's stomach lurched as a new possibility came to light... But, would it even be sensible? Why would _he_ care about _her_?

Then again, he was the only trainer that she knew well- or, well enough. Silver was strong as well, Ellie continued to remind herself, and she noticed that he became more powerful with every battle they had; he was keen on challenging her whenever they encountered each other. Their relationship was nothing more than a rivalry, though there were occasions where the two actually spent time together. Well, that was mainly when Ellie needed directions to go somewhere and she would ask him to show her the way. She didn't take verbal directions very well and often had to listen to Silver's complaints about her lack of competence in that area. Still, he never refused when she asked nicely.

Ellie silently stepped forward, her feet failing to make an audible sound as she approached. She had a way of sneaking around unnoticed and it had been this way for as long as she could remember. Even her father or friends were startled when she approached without saying a word. It was rather amusing, in all honestly, though no one seemed to appreciate this little-known skill. The girl's hand was outstretched and gently gripping the tall trainer's shoulder, though she immediately let go upon feeling a jolt of pain in her upper midsection; of all the things he could do, that guy just had to elbow her...

"That was... How it happened..." It was obvious that her nerves were taking hold as she retold the story from the very beginning; Ellie's voice wavered and she stumbled over her own words every now again. It was just difficult to speak clearly when noticing how intensely Silver's eyes were trained on her. There was a certain level of heat within his gaze, she noticed almost immediately. He had something to say though she assumed that he was withholding judgement until the story was completely finished. Her eyes were on the carpeted floor of the hotel room once again.

And sure enough, the red-haired trainer was quick to speak when the tale came to an end. "Look at me." His tone was low, but possessed a harshness that was all too familiar- yet, there was something different about it... The voice seemed to be fueled by some kind of low-burning rage that Ellie couldn't identify the source of. She raised her eyes once again and looked to Silver, only to widen as soon as he continued speaking. "How is going after your poacher mother, in any way, a good idea?! You _knew_ how dangerous that deranged woman was! You could have been _killed_!"

"I made that choice, but it was never my decision to make! Do you know how deep I was? I literally had to steal my way through these past weeks! I had to risk- you know- tarnishing my, my record in order to feed myself!"

"And you couldn't have done anything? Anything at all?! Was it really worth it, Ellie?"

"N-no, it wasn't. I failed!" She snarled back, eyes narrowed yet never leaving her rival's face; it was contorted with such anger... She hated that. Why was he even angry? In that moment, she was overwhelmed with emotion: Rage, frustration, sadness, _remorse_... Brushing a few strands of sandy hair out of her face, she felt her throat tightening quickly. It was apparent that Ellie was choking out her own words at this point, and it was not long after when tears began to slide down her cheeks. Ellie didn't think that she could feel anymore pathetic.

"Why the hell are you crying?! Did I upset you? I'm just telling you the truth!"

"No, i-it's not that..."

"Then what is it? Is there something else that you need to tell me? Spit it out!"

"You don't get it, do you?!" Ellie spat back almost immediately, taking off her glasses and quickly wiping the tears away from her reddening cheeks; her attempt to look less vulnerable failed and it they reappeared moments later. Why did Silver even care about what happened to her? She was nothing more than some trainer he ended up encountering by mere chance- just someone he tolerated more than most others, something Silver made clear. What they had was nothing more than a friendly rivalry, something that could barely be considered friendship.

"What don't I get?"

With a few quick motions, Ellie had tossed her glasses onto the bed, stood up and grabbed a hold of Silver's coat; her shaking hand held onto the thick black material tightly as it tugged down. She felt Silver tense in reaction and surely thought that he was going to shove her away immediately. It was surprising when his hands gripped her shoulders, causing her wince under the pressure, yet he did not nothing else. Ellie could feel the grasp on her injury lighten up a moment later, likely because he noticed that she was in pain. "I wasn't just her hostage..." The girl's wavering voice was nothing more than a soft hiss. "I was her- her apprentice, assistant, whatever the hell you'd like to call it. I've done things, Silver... Th-that I can never forget, I can _never_ take back. You don't know the types of things that I've seen _her_ do. Her pokemon... They're terrifying- _lethal_..."

She was lost within her own thoughts at that moment. The memories of horrified trainers and their horrid screams surfaced almost immediately, and Ellie found herself letting go the coat and simply going numb from the inside out. Silver didn't seen to react, his gaze burning into her with a questioning look; he was probably trying to process what just happened- what she had said. There was a sudden tug on the bottom of her shirt which cased her to snap out of that bizarre trance. Ellie's eyes flickered down to the small creature, Silver's Sneasel, noticing that she was attempting to get her attention. Why Sneasel wanted her, she wasn't exactly sure. The creature simply let out a soft cry and proceeded to climb onto the bed; her kind eyes shone like a pair of golden coins, never leaving the girl she from where she sat... It was as if she was expecting something.

Silver expressed disinterest in the pokemon. He turned and approached the nearby window, while dusting off the front of his coat with one hand. It was difficult to tell what was running through his mind, though it was easy to see that he was quite deep in thought. Ellie considered it best to leave him be for the time being and sat back down on the bed, turning her attention to Sneasel. The small Dark Type crawled into her lap a moment later, and she found herself petting the pokemon absently. Silence just seemed to find its way back into the space; Ellie almost found it difficult to breathe, as if the air was trying to suffocate her.

"... I'm going to do what I can to help you, but I can only help if I learn more about this woman," the red-haired trainer finally spoke. He turned to face her, brushing some locks of hair from his line of sight. "According to you, there are only two options: Wait to be picked off, or stop her before she manages to find you- _us_... Because, you basically dragged me into this just by talking to me."

"Well..." Ellie would have shrugged if her shoulder wasn't killing her. "I couldn't say for sure whether or not you were safe if you decided not to help me."

"And you chose to speak to me knowing that. I'm kind of forced into this, aren't I?."

"If that's the way you perceive it..."

Silver gave a light shrug in response, looking between Sneasel and girl petting her. "Whatever the case may be, I was going to help you regardless."

The girl raised an eyebrow, tilting her head lightly in befuddlement. "But why? What am I to you?"

"I don't think I'm entirely heartless, Crossdale." He took a few steps forward and keep his eyes on her, though it was difficult to tell what Silver was currently thinking- how he felt. Did he feel even a little duped, even if that was not Ellie's intention? Possibly, but he was never an open book; she knew that he never wanted anyone to know what was going on inside of his head. In Silver's words, he enjoyed being two steps ahead of everyone. Step one was keeping them guessing about his plans and ideas. "For the record, my younger self definitely would have left you in that alleyway. I was even more selfish back then than I am now, if you can believe that. But you know, that's the past."

Ellie didn't know much about past Silver, but didn't care to know him... Present Silver was already a little bit of a handful. She could only assume that she would have outright despised his younger self. "Yeah, alright... Fine... We'll need to use our combined strength to have any kind of chance against her." Ellie cast the Sneasel a glance; she came to wonder why Silver just didn't evolve her at this point, especially since he was keen on mentioning his plans to challenge the league and become the regional champion quite often... "And, we'll need a plan."

"Well, I know what the first step of that plan is."

"What?"

The redhead let out a slight snort. "Making sure that you can use both of your arms."


	4. 4- Silver

Silver's eyes blinked away the grogginess as his vision was temporarily blinded by the sunlight, sitting up and letting out an irritated growl; he hated being disturbed from sleep. _'She forgot to close the curtains...'_ He knew that he should have just done it himself, like he did practically everything, but was just too tired to be bothered and Ellie was still wide awake when he fell asleep. She mentioned something about having issues with an irregular sleep pattern, which explained why she was often in need of something caffeinated- mainly coffee. He brushed some strands of crimson hair out of his eyes and gave the girl a glance; she was still sleeping, her back turned away from him while her arms were wrapped around an Espeon pokedoll. Her actual pokemon, an a small Umbreon, was curled up at her feet.

Even four days later, it still felt rather awkward having to share a bed with a girl. It wasn't like he was actually attracted to her; Silver didn't recall a time where he was attracted to anyone. He was initially concerned about Ellie possibly making advances on him, though it was cleared up rather quickly. The conversation was still rather fresh in the redhead's mind.

 _"I don't care about sharing a bed with you, Silver. It's not an issue." She let out a small chuckle, shaking her head. "I'm not gonna try and seduce you in the middle of the night or something. Don't worry. I'm Asexual, meaning that I'm not attracted to anyone in a sexual way. I'm not even interested in anything like that."_

 _"Oh.. Fine then. I didn't know."_

 _"Well, that's not something that you can tell just by looking at someone... I still want to have a strictly romantic relationship, but that's kind of a problem. Finding someone that would want a romance-only relationship... But ya know, I'm not really looking right now anyway."_

 _"Why?"_

 _"Because, if you couldn't figure it out, I can barely handle my life as it is. I don't want to bring someone else into it just yet. You know, my cousin is always looking for her knight in shining amour, even though she hasn't sorted herself out yet. She's always waiting for someone to come along and save her... Not me, I don't expect someone to just swoop in and rescue me."_

 _He let out a light snort. "I guess I can respect that, but you still ended up asking me for help."_

 _"I may have asked you for help, but only because I realized that I was in over my head. And besides, I'm not asking you to save me. I'm asking you to work beside me and help. There's a difference."_

However relieved he may have been, Silver was rather reluctant to believe Ellie's words at first; it was always possible that she was just lying to him about it. Lying was a natural reaction of defense in people. Even so, the trainer grew to believe her more with every morning that he woke up without being disturbed. It was a similar scene at this time everyday: there was a little gap of space that separated the two trainers while a couple of their pokemon slept peacefully, usually her Umbreon and his Sneasel. They were small enough to fit on the bed without an issue, though he would be lying if he said that some of his larger pokemon haven't attempted to climb into bed with him.

Silver discarded his current thoughts and decided to focus on other more important matters. His eyes flickered to the small digital clock sitting atop the nearby wooden nightstand; it was currently sixteen minutes after ten in the morning, indicating that they had both overslept. "Ugh, great..." He then turned his attention to Ellie once again. As strange as it may have seemed, they actually had plans to go out today. The girl had spent the past days in this hotel room, recovering from the injury to her shoulder. She had refused to go to a Pokemon Center and see a Nurse Joy about her injury, resulting in Silver righting her shoulder himself. It was a painful experience, needless to say, especially since he had no medical experience beyond the basics. She was feeling better now, even if her shoulder was still paining her from time to time.

"Hey, get up. Now." Ellie did not appear too pleased about receiving a blow to head with a pillow, though Silver didn't know how to actually wake her up. Shaking her shoulder was definitely out of the question. The man watched his companion shift, turning over to face him as a few incoherent mumbles escaped her lips. She buried her face in her own pillow a moment later. "Ellie! We overslept. Now get up!" He hit her with his own pillow once again, a bit harder this time.

"I'm... I'm up..." Ellie raised her head and let out a very drowsy, deep yawn. "No need for hitting... Just gimme a couple minutes..."

"Whatever, just stay awake for Arceus' sake." Silver huffed and tossed his pillow back in its original place before slipping out of bed. He ran a pale hand through his hair in an attempt to smooth down some of the stray strands. The redhead's hair had always been long, which made it difficult to keep up at times, but he had still chosen to let it grow longer as he matured. "I'm going to get ready. We have things to do today."

"Like what?"

"Are you serious? We planned this out, remember?" Silver's eyes fell on the floor next to Ellie's side of the bed, focused on the pair of boots that were tossed there carelessly. He never mentioned how many details that were actually noticed by him, even if they were a bit trivial, but it was a habit that the red-haired trainer could never break. As soon as he took note of the footwear, he could tell immediately that they were beyond walked through. "We're going out to train, and we're getting you new shoes. It's no wonder that you were bitching about your feet hurting."

Ellie sighed softly while shifting herself into a sitting position, turning her head to look at Silver; her pale eyes were still hazy with drowsiness. "I don't have the money for shoes, Silver..."

"I'll pay for them, especially if means that you'll stop complaining about it."

The rest of the morning passed by in a rather quiet manner. After both of them were dressed and ready, Silver had been the one to take hold of the lead while Ellie simply followed; he was making the decisions as to where they would go or what they were going to do. Silver didn't mind since he tended to be more assertive in general, and was actually pretty content with the girl simply agreeing to what he deemed to be the best course of action. There was little friction. After purchasing some late breakfast and coffee at a nearby cafe, Silver had literally dragged Ellie by the wrist to a shop with the intention of buying her some new boots.

Of course, she had attempted to refuse multiple times but Silver was very, very stubborn. It had always been difficult to change his mind once it was set. She eventually gave in and allowed him to pay for a pair of quality knee high boots, black just like her old ankle length ones. Ellie wasn't insane for questioning why he would insist upon doing this, as Silver was quite aware that he wasn't exactly the most generous person in the world, but he explained it the same as he did to everyone: he could help someone out if he chose to, even if he wasn't a soup or kitchen or something of the like.

Afterwards, Silver was keen on bringing her to an area where they could train practically undisturbed: The National Park, which was a located a small distance away from the bustling city. It was primarily a very large expanse of land that humans worked to preserve with many freshly-groomed gardens, stretches of tall grass that housed a variety of wild pokemon, all safely enclosed by a thick wild forest. There was a slight breeze that rustled the transitioning treetops, fallen leaves sailing through the air until they finally reach the grass below; it made a quite nice carpet of oranges, reds and browns below their feet, crunching quietly with each step.

"What a nice place... I guess it's gonna be getting colder soon too..." Ellie's eyes were focused on the trees as they approached the a small clearing free of any tall grass patches, yet still a good distance away from the park benches and walkways. Silver watched as she tripped over a stick lying in the way and almost fell. However, he didn't bother to saying anything; he just wondered how she could not pay attention at times.

"This should work." He finally stopped when they reached a large patch of short grass, which was bordered by the forest on two sides and a line of tall grass on another; it was near the park's outskirts. "You should know what to do."

"Know what to do?"

Silver let out a brief sigh, crossing his arms and shaking his head. "I told you that we were going to be practicing. You're the one who managed to explain in detail how 'frightening' your mother is. And if we're going to get rid of her, then we need to remain sharp. And you've been out of the game for a little while now."

"It was only a few days..." However, she didn't oppose the idea and crossed the battlefield without another word. There was a bit reluctance in her movements, he noted, though couldn't figure out why.

"Alright, let's begin. Treat this like an actual battle. We can heal out pokemon at the Pokemon Center." Silver's fingers were wrapped around one of the pokeballs he had taken form his belt, eyeing the girl from a moment before releasing the pokemon from inside: His Crobat. He climbed into the sky before hovering in the middle of the clearing expectantly. The bat pokemon gave his trainer a glance before looking back to Ellie, who simply stood there and did not send out a pokemon.

Her thin fingers were lightly clenched into fists, her eyes on the ground for a few moments before looking back to Silver. "I can't do this right now..."

"What do you mean that 'you can't do this'?" The man raised an eyebrow, gaze narrowing as he attempted to make sense of what she was saying. What could that enigma of a girl even mean by that? She seemed perfectly fine these past few days, yet her behavior had completely shifted at the mention of battling. "Come on! This is important!"

"I don't want to fight right now, Silver. I don't feel comfortable doing that."

"Why?"

"I really would rather not-"

"-So, you won't fight me yet you won't explain why?" This was beyond irritating- annoying and befuddling on many levels; that was apparent within his expression. Silver felt that he was going out of his way to help her- to save her life, actually. The least that Ellie could for him was cooperate, or at least provide an explanation as to why she could not! "What, are you scared? Don't be a fucking wimp!" Silver was, in truth, very frightened: of the inevitable confrontation with such a menacing force, of the possible outcomes, of how far this wretched woman could go. Ellie stated that Marie Crossdale had no limits. She was out for the blood of anyone who dared to cross her, and would kill without hesitation. The circumstances were grave, very grave. And whenever Silver felt an inkling of fear, he always responded with anger- even if he didn't intend to.

"You know what, fine!" With one swift movement, the girl plucked a pokeball- a Premier Ball- from her belt and released the pokemon. An oddly-colored Delphox stood in front of her trainer, observing her surroundings for a moment before taking a battle stance; the pokemon was obviously prepared. The battle had immediately began when the Poison Type swooped down, his large razor-like wings glowing as he prepared to attack his opponent. Crobat's upper wings sliced the air in the shape an 'X' yet they did not make contact with anything; the Delphox had already evaded the attack and was on the move.

A glimmer could be seen within Ellie's eyes, though there was some indescribable element that made it slightly unsettling. Silver couldn't help but feel suspicious; it sent a series of chills down his spine, though he could not place the feeling. It was cold, he knew, but there was something welse...

"Autumn, Psychic!" Ellie called out to her pokemon, her tone sharp and powerful. It was definitely a contrast to her tone during the last battle they had three months ago, and almost took Silver by surprise. He watched as Crobat climbed into the air again in order to prepare another attack. However, there was no escaping the psychic energy that surrounded the purple bat; it caused Crobat to freeze in place before a wave of energy hit, the otherworldly grip on the creature gone in an instant. Needless to say, the Poison Type did not make it it though an attack with such strength and plummeted towards the ground.

Silver was quick to return his pokemin to his pokeball before hitting the ground, though it was difficult to contain his shock. Never before had his Crobat been outpaced by the Delphox, and he could tell- even from a distance- that the attack powerful. Powerful and painful. He was even worried that it was strong enough to _kill_... If it weren't for the fact that Crobat returned to his pokeball, the redhead would have stopped right there. "That was fast, and strong."

"You seem surprised." Ellie replied almost immediately, her lips pulled together tightly. Silver certainly didn't like how this was going. It wasn't because he was currently loosing, being down one pokemon already, but he felt _concerned;_ he didn't want to send out another one of his pokemon, not while she was looking at him like that. The redhead just felt compelled to protect his pokemon from her.

"Ellie- What happened?" Were the only words that could leave his lips, slowly clipping the pokeball back to his belt while his eyes remained on her. "That attack... That could have seriously hurt my pokemon. It could have killed him!"

"What? You asked me to fight, didn't you?"

"Not like some kind of classless savage- not your mother!"

"I'm nothing like my mother!"

"Oh really? Why do I feel l'm putting my pokemon's lives in danger right now? Why do I feel suspicious just by looking at you then?! Can you explain _that_?!"

Ellie opened her mouth to reply, yet no words came from her. "Return." She called her Delphox back to her pokeball and shoved it into her bag. A heavy silence fell over the clearing with only the faint rustling of the treetops to be heard. It remained like this for what felt like an eternity, yet neither of the trainers moved from their place. It was woman that eventually spoke up. "You're right. You're definitely right." Her tone was strained and hushed, gaze softening as he spoke. "But this is why I didn't want to fight. I've had some bad habits burned into me, Silver. Into all of us, and we're just trying to work through it."

With that, she turned and walked away from the battlefield without another word. Silver watched her leave for one of the park benches, sitting down and leaning against the back. It was true: He hadn't realized the type of effect that her experiences could have had on her. However, it made sense. He remembered distinctly how Ellie described some of the events she had been apart of.

 _"I was the one who cornered that trainer... She sent her pokemon after him. I would tell you want happened, but I looked away because I couldn't bare to see it myself. I will say that he never walked out of that alleyway."_


	5. 5- Ellie

[ A/N: I decided to do another update before the holidays. Thank you for the feedback and favoriting!

-Skylar ]

"Why... Why did I get so angry? Silver was just being Silver..." Her voice was hushed, her head lowered so that her words were barely audible to anyone who may happen to pass by. Ellie was aware that she was probably quite a sight be seen, appearing distraught over something that shouldn't have mattered; unfortunately, it did matter... It mattered quite a lot, because she had almost murdered a pokemon- a pokemon that belonged to someone that she cared for, a _friend_. It was obvious that fragments of her past three months in hell were clinging to her. Ellie just had not noticed the full effects until now. In July, she never would have fought with such aggression when Silver spited her. He had done worse in the past and she always kept her composure.

That heavy silence, much like the lead weight she felt sitting upon her shoulders, had returned and there was nothing to be heard except for that mid-September breeze. Except, it was much more than a mild wind that kissed her skin and combed through her hair; it turned into a series of violent gusts that swirled and whipped the world around her. She felt the unpleasant taste of hair in her mouth, vision clouded by long sections of it blowing over her glasses and eyes. There definitely were times that Ellie hated having long hair.

Amid the wind, which rustled the treetops in a rather violent manner and caused fallen leaves to sail across the ground, she noticed her bag shifting; it eventually tipped over and continued to move every now and again. Ellie continued to brush her hair out of her face to even catch sight of the black material moving, but she had soon figured out what was happening: One of her pokemon was starting to become restless and needed to be let out. _"Probably Eclipse or Fate,"_ the trainer commented silently, pulling her shoulder bag into her lap and opening the flap. She unzipped the compartment that contained her pokeballs and noticed that her Dusk Ball was the culprit; it was shaking wildly.

"Oh Eclipse, you can't sit still." Ellie plucked the ball from the pouch and released her energetic pokemon: an Absol that appeared in a flash and let out a light growl. It was a sound that indicated curiosity, the Dark Type's scarlet eyes moving with the motions of the leaves and the wind. The woman let out a sigh and leaned against the backboard of the bench. "There, happy?" At least something hadn't changed over the past three months: Eclipse was still that same childish and playful pokemon. Ellie felt Eclipse nudge her leg as if to say 'come play with me!' However, the trainer didn't bother to stand from her seat. "Not right now, girly. Go on and play. Just don't go too far..." She reached out and gave her pokemon a light pet on the head, watching as it then rushed off to chase some leaves.

And the silence came to visit for a little while once again.

"It seems like it's going to rain soon." Silver's stern voice rang in her ears for the first time in what felt like an eternity, causing her to flinch and turn her head in his direction. Even so, there was not an inkling of emotion within Ellie's expression. The tall trainer decided to take a seat when he didn't receive any kind of response, stretching out his long, thin legs while crossing his arms. "I remember your Absol rather well... I think you know why."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Ellie's pale lips. "Does your memory have anything to do with her jumping on you, and knocking you over?" Silver was not the only person to remember the Absol that way, as she was known for letting her ocean of love wash over others. Well... Eclipse more often drowned others with her affection- sometimes suffocated them. For some reason, the Absol was rather fond of Silver in particluar; neither of the trainers could figure out why.

"Pretty much." His eyes were following the fluffy white shape that bounded across the stretch of land, becoming splotched with the colors of Autumn. However, Silver's gaze flickered towards the dark sky and his lips were creased into a slight frown. "We should get going, unless you want to be soaked."

Ellie's smile transformed into a playful smirk. "Maybe I wanna stay out in the rain and get sick, because I'm an angsty teen and I enjoy pain. You don't know my life."

As the sky transitioned from a crisp, healthy blue to a somber gray, the sea of crowds in Goldenrod City became much easier to navigate. Many of the wanderers likely feared the cold rain that would soon come, and therefore fled to their homes and hotel rooms out of desperation to remain dry. That was quite a relief to Ellie, and probably Silver as well; she could assume that he despised being shoved around by impatient citizens just as much as she did. Thinning clusters of people meant that they could actually see the golden roads that the city was famous for. Eclipse was happy to accompany the pair back into the city- provided that she remained close to her trainer.

The incident that had occurred earlier felt like nothing more than a pothole in the winding road of this 'adventure'. Silver never seemed to bring it up, instead deciding to make some attempt at idle chatter; he wasn't good at it. Ellie noticed that, much like her, he was best at talking about deep subjects: about life and the 'what ifs', the strange happenings, the way people think... His thoughts were very captivating. The redhead was so confident about these things, yet he failed to keep a more simple conversation going... Or, perhaps he was just neevous about something? Maybe he was trying to avoid the incident... But why? Perhaps, he felt guilty or uncomfortable. Ellie knew that she felt both of those emotions hammering at her; they just consumed her.

And eventually, she had to speak up about it. "Hey, Silver... I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I should have told you about my... Problems. I didn't though. I thought that if I ignored it, everything would be okay and I-I would just, like- snap out of it..." Everything that she stated was a genuine apology, but Ellie was also throwing a line out there for him. She wanted to just get this out of the way instead of shoving the matter under the carpet.

The woman held her breath as Silver remained silent. He failed to even cast a glance her way for the longest time. "Look, you don't need to apologize. It just happened, and I don't blame you... I guess I _could_ have considered how you felt a little more..." The second portion of his phrase came out with a bit of reluctance. Silver never did like to admit when he was wrong, which made Ellie appreciate what he was saying even more- even if it wasn't really an 'apology'.

"Thanks, for considering my feelings now I mean-" Ellie replied, her tone wavering a bit; her nerves were beginning to take hold of her as this conversation traveled into uncharted territory. She just wasn't sure how to react. "I mean, it's a little late and such but... It's the thought that counts, I guess." There was small smile etched into her features, just apparent enough for Silver to notice; Ellie could tell that he did, and could have sworn that she saw the faintest smile on his lips. It may have been there for no longer than a second, but it was there.

"I understand what you mean." The red-haired man gave a simple shrug, his fingers fiddling with the high collar of his long jacket- then pushing up his glasses, a pair of narrow lenses sitting in a thin red frame. He continued to adjust them until they sat correctly on his small, curved nose.

Ellie had always liked how Silver looked with glasses, casually commenting on it whenever he would complain about having to wear them; that was actually pretty often. Maybe he was just worried about loosing that the intimidation factor? The woman could say first-hand that he was still very intimidating... It was all in the eyes, that quicksilver gaze that could cut you like a razor... "Glasses trouble? I know how you feel." She let out a lighthearted chuckle and quickly pushed up her own pair of wide purple frames.

"I guess that you could say that. I can't tell you how much I hate wearing glasses."

"Well, I don't think it's all that bad. Besides... You have a real pair of 'choice specs'." Ellie couldn't contain her amusement over her own response, her smile widening almost enough to show her teeth- which rarely ever made an appearance when she did smile. It was obvious that she was quite pleased with herself.

Silver's eyes flickered to meet her own gaze, an eyebrow raised as he continued to process what she just said. "Did you... Was that a _pun_?"

"Correction: It was a good pun. I mean, no puns are actually good... But that's what makes them good." The chubby trainer kept her smile, tilting her head while letting out a nervous chuckle... Perhaps, he was not a fan of puns. "Still- they look really good on you... Help me out, Eclipse." Ellie turned her gaze to her pokemon, expecting to receive some of kind of response from the Absol: a sound, a nudge, something. It just wasn't like her to be this quiet and calm.

That was the moment when Ellie realized something, and it caused her heart to plummet into the depths of her stomach: Eclipse was not by her side like she once was, nor was she next to Silver or behind them. The pokemon had vanished.

"Ellie, for Arceus' sake! Slow down!" She heard him calling her, commanding her to stop despite the fact that he could keep up with her rather easily; in truth, Ellie wasn't all that fast of a runner overall. She may have been light-footed and quiet, but did not possess- well... Quick feet. Her breathing was labored by this point in time, both caused by her quickened pace and calling the name of her Absol. There was no sight a shape white as snow, or a sound that even resembled the pokemon's call.

Eventually, the girl felt her body collide with the cool brick road and skid to a halt; if anything, she probably tripped but it certainly didn't matter. Ellie could barely keep her thoughts straight. Dizziness washed over her in an instant, her lungs were screaming for air, her mind was clouded with thoughts and her heart overwhelmed with emotion. There way that she truly felt was in describable. People were probably staring at her, even if she could not see them with her eyes shut; the trainer would normally care about they perceived her, about making a mistake or being embarrassed, but she couldn't care less at the moment. She just wanted her pokemon to be safe.

"Shit, what were you even thinking?!" Silver had probably completely caught up with her. "What are you looking at, punk? This isn't your business! Get out of here before I have to throw you out!" People were most definitely staring. "What did I just say to that guy? There's nothing to see here! Go!" Many passing people... Ellie felt a hand on her back, presumably Silver's, and the redhead spoke again. "Come on. Can you get up?"

"Ugh, Silver..." The girl's eyes cracked open and one of the first things to be seen was blood. It painted the ground beneath her in small streaks and flecks, probably from her hands- which were burning with pain. She pushed herself onto her knees, slowly- very slowly, and then tried to blink of the haziness from her vision. Ellie could feel her chest hurting; she let out a few wheezing coughs. And then, a wave of nausea hit her like a ton of bricks and caused her to sit back. "Oh my god... I don't feel very well..."

Ellie was awaiting some kind of lecture about how reckless she was, how ridiculous her actions were and that she deserved this. Well, he was actually right; she felt absolutely idiotic, but the dots were connected rather easily. Her Absol running loose in the same city that houses so many criminals- one specific poacher in particular. She had a right to be frightened! "Just lean back... Take it easy."

She felt something around her back, a presence close by her side; it was definitely Silver, which puzzled her mind even further. However, she took the opportunity to lean into his arm and attempt to gather herself. She fell victim to another wave of nausea. "I..."

"Don't puke on me. You don't want to know what will happen if you do."

"I'm not..."

"Good. I'm not going to walk around the city looking for your pokemon like that."


	6. 6- Silver

It wasn't long before Ellie was on her feet once again, having pushed aside whatever sickness that had come over her. Silver assumed it was a terrible mix of fear, anxiety and overexertion, but something odd kept nagging at him- telling him that there were something else going on that he just didn't know about. He, naturally, a very observant person though this was one of the few times where Silver had considered something about another person. The cynical trainer was pretty self-centered overall; he was even well aware of this, and that was what made this even stranger for him.

Now that he thought about it, there were a few times in the past where Ellie just seemed to act strangely for a little while. There was one time while they were eating that she appeared to be sick: a fatigued look in her eyes, barely touching the food in front of her for quite awhile, eating it slowly. There was also a time where the woman just snapped at him out of the blue. There certainly wasn't a reason for it, and the matter that they ended up fighting over was so unimportant that Silver himself even forgot what it even was. And as much he'd like answers to this question, now was certainly not the time to ask.

"How many alleyways are in Goldenrod City are there?" Ellie turned to ask. The wind's force had picked up, whistling through the dark passage, disturbing the clothing lines above and sending litter on a trip across on the old asphalt. The sky, which was pleasant blue this morning, was now covered by ominous gray clouds that hung low; rain was inevitable.

"No clue. More than we can cover in one night. Even narrowing down the possibilities by looking near restaurants won't do us any good. There's just too many. But I guess it makes our chances of running into your crackpot mother slimmer- maybe," the redhead replied with a shrug, brushing some strands of hair out of his face.

Slimmer, but there was still a chance.

"Honestly, with my luck, that would happen. Doesn't matter if the odds are ninety-nine to one."

It was the worst case scenario, and one that they didn't even have a solid plan for. Silver considered the task to be easy at first: find the woman, corner her, defeat her... Except, he came to accept that this was not a normal battle- not against just another trainer, not against some wannabe villain, not against some pathetic Team Rocket grunt with an even more pathetic Zubat. "Look, let's just focus. Where would your Absol have gone when figuring out that she was lost?"

"It usually takes her a long time to figure that out."

"Let's be hypothetical then. She knows she's lost right now. Where's the first place that she would go?"

"Probably to wherever we're staying at, making detours to beg for food along the way." Despite the fact that the Absol was rather skinny with lanky limbs, she was somewhat of a glutton. Eclipse loved food almost as much as she loved her trainer.

"Then we should go back there and see if she finds her way. If not, then we can go to the police about it," Silver replied. He was looking out the entrance of the alley that they were currently was much better than earning stares and hushed remarks from passing strangers. "We don't have to tell them anything else, except that your pokemon is lost, give a description. It's technically not lying, since that is the case."

Ellie had opened her mother speak, but she was cut off by the sudden burst of sound coming from her pocket. It was just her cellphone, Silver assumed before watching the girl fish the small device out of her pocket. Cell phones, or pokecells, were one of the many communication devices that ran on a public service line meant for trainers to keep in touch with others. Silver had upgraded to a pokecell some time ago, after his pokegear finally stopped working. It was probably one of the few friends she had, maybe that white-haired guy that she described as 'a walking meme'.

"We have some trouble..." Her voice was nothing but a weak mumble, the remaining color drained from her face upon seeing the screen. Silver could only assume what that meant, even though it seemed nearly impossible; then again, some things weren't as impossible as they appeared to be. The phone continued to buzz until her thumb hesitantly hit the 'answer' button. "Hello."

"Hello there, my _dear_ daughter."

Silver usually enjoyed being right. This, however, was not one of those moments.

"I think I have something that you want." There was a wave of noise in the background. It sounded like a buzz of electricity, followed by a blood-chilling screech that was nearly unidentifiable- only it was recognizable, even if Silver wished it wasn't... An Absol's cry was simply too distinct. "What a fine Absol... But so incredibly stupid, like a little lost Mareep."

"Eclipse..." Ellie's chest rose and fell as the silence passed through for a moment. Silver could tell that the woman was attempting to keep herself composed, probably because she refused to seem vulnerable, but she could be seen through like a pane of freshly-cleaned glass: the astonishment, the immense worry for her pokemon, the _rage_. The redhead couldn't recall a time where he had seen Ellie angry. He had not a clue what her anger looked like, but never imagined that it was all that much; she seemed too meek, too _soft_...

But maybe he was wrong? It turned out that he wrong about a lot of her.

"Of course. I couldn't leave such a fine creature wandering the streets," the voice on the other end of the line spoke once again. Marie's tone was soft, yet it a had a rasp- a menacing element that could make the hairs on the back of one's neck stand. The same droning buzz appeared in the background of the call again, and then another screech followed. Silver won't openly admit it, but it was difficult to listen to; the Absol was definitely in excruciating pain, that was obvious, but he found himself wondering by what. "I'll tell you what to do, _honey_. Turn around and face the opposite direction, and then walk. Walk until you reach the end. You already know what's waiting." And the call ended.

Both trainers remained where they stood, and neither of them uttered a single word. The only sound that could be heard was the occasional passing of the car, along with the drop of her phone- the sickening crack that indicated a broken screen. For the first time in her life, Ellie couldn't care less about having to pay for a new one.

Disarm. Disarm and hope for the best.

 _"Her pokemon are her weapons, I guess you could say. They can disable and kill without a second thought. All they need is Her to tell them to. She doesn't even have to lift a finger... But she could have a knife on her. I've seen it a few times, but she's never actually used it on anyone. Never had to, but I bet she would if she needed to."_

 _"I know for a fact that neither of us are strong enough on our own to fight her off directly, but together we have a better chance. Maybe if we can get her pokemon off of her somehow, she won't have much to attack us with-except for, maybe, a that knife. You have an Alakazam, I have a Delphox, a Swoobat, and an Umbreon with telekinesis... Maybe, I don't know. It could work."_

That was only two days ago. But now, there were no 'maybes' or 'could works'; what inklings of a plan they did have needed to work now, or neither one of them would see the end of this storm. Silver's eyes were focused straight forward, even as the rain began to pound on his head. The cold droplets coated the lenses of his glasses and distorted the world around them, unless and discarded. At least his jacket was serving its purpose and kept most his body from the shoulders down dry. Ellie must have had it much worse, because she didn't have any kind of rain protection- not that it actually mattered right now. She was probably too busy thinking about Eclipse, and what that wretched woman was doing to her.

His past self would have sneered and thought it ridiculous. Present Silver knew better, and understood. He was secretly glad that he understood.

The alleyway grew darker as they progressed, all of the remaining light from the main drag disappearing behind them. There were a few miscellaneous lights that dotted the shadows here and there, but they were far and few in between. It wouldn't be all that bad if the clouds were masking the remaining daylight. Silver didn't even know where this path led to, but he could only assume that it was a dead end; it seemed very fitting, at least for one of them... The question was: Which one?

The narrow path just seemed to stretch onward forever with no end in sight, or perhaps the anticipation made time slow down. Silver was expecting something to attack somewhere. Every faint rustle or trivial sound set off the alarms in head, but that was nothing unusual. He even found himself lashing out when he felt something carefully grab his hand.

"Calm down... Just me," Ellie replied in a whisper. He could see the vague shape of her close by. "She's gonna try and separate us. I know it... We need to say together."

"...Fine." Silver left his arm drop once again and felt the girl's hand carefully grab onto his. It felt strange, actually, because he could never recall a time when someone held his hand; the tall trainer also couldn't tell if this strangeness was uncomfortable. He didn't believe that holding hands was going to be very effective in keeping them together, but Silver didn't say anything about it... Perhaps, she was just looking for some kind of comfort- even if she didn't want to admit it... Okay, thinking of it like that make _him_ feel uncomfortable...

They continued onward through the curtain of rain, which became denser as time went on, and another light flickered through the droplets. It was a much larger light that shone down like ones placed on the main street. And as the two approached, Silver had noticed the silhouette of a figure standing underneath of it; just the sight of it caused his blood to run cold, and he found himself holding onto Ellie's hand much tighter.

He couldn't even tell if it was human, until it- she- had spoken. "Well, bravo. You made it here in one piece... Come into the light, why don't you?" It was the same voice that came through the phone speaker what seemed like ages ago. He knew it, only it was more chilling with the eerie patter of the rain.

Silver didn't know if Ellie was ready to do as she was told, but he found his hand being tugged forward. There was nothing he could do but follow until the shadows on his form were washed away. The older woman before hi was short- shorter than Ellie for certain, body covered by a long gray coat with a hood. She was wearing baggy gray pants and boots as well, but those where the only distinguishable features. Marie Crossdale's face was hidden behind the large hood well.

"I'm here. Now what do you want?" It was Ellie who had spoken up this time, her form waterlogged to the core though still standing tall. Her face displayed nothing as usual. It was her eyes that spoke for her; they were crisp and alight, and could kill if that were possible.

"Hasn't that loser in Kalos taught you any manners?" Even if Silver could not see her face, he knew that she was eyeing him. "It seems like you brought a friend. Why don't introduce them? I've seen them lingering around, but I didn't know that they were friends with you."

Ellie's gaze flickered to the red-haired trainer for a moment, though focused back on the hooded woman. "Who he is none of your business. What's going on is between you and-"

"-except you brought him, fully knowing what you were doing. So obviously..." Marie stepped closer to the man, hand outstretched as her fingers gently brushed his chin. "This involves him now."

Her hand was smacked away reflexively. "Don't touch me." The very sight and touch of Marie disgusted him. He didn't even want her near him or Ellie. "You don't need to know I am. It doesn't matter."

"Feisty, hm?" The hunter let out a rasping chuckle before pulling her gigantic hood down, letting the meager amounts of light and copious amounts of rain kiss her skin. The resemblance of Ellie was there, even if they looked quite different. She had the same defined rosy cheeks and doll-like eyes. Marie's straight hair was peppered with silver-gray, though roughly chopped into a medium-length cut. If Silver had guess, she cut her own hair out of fear of being recognized; she was meticulous and intelligent, knowing that small things can leave a paper trail if one was trying to stay under the radar. "You look vaguely familiar though..." Marie's eyes remained on him, a searching glimmer within them. "Ah, now I remember... You're Giovanni's kid, aren't you?"

"How do you.. How do you know that?!" If there was one thing that Silver truly feared, it was being recognized- being trapped in the shadow of a man that he despised. He didn't even resemble his father in the slightest, but this woman was still able to pin him like some vibrant sticky note to a cork board. And he could feel that fear washing over his body, causing his heart to hammer in his chest, his mind to reel.

And he responded with anger.

"How the fuck do you know that?! Answer me!"

The hunter simply shook her head. She appeared to be rather amused by Silver's outburst, but he didn't care. "I used to do some work for your father a time long ago. Ancient history, boy. You were only a couple of years old at the time. I met your mother too... A very pretty woman, and you were such an adorable child," Marie responded in a sweeter tone, almost sickly-sweet, a small smile appearing on her lips. "And you look just like her... So _pretty_."

Silver hadn't responded with a single word. Instead, he used his free hand to reach for the pokeball containing his Feraligatr.


	7. 7- Ellie

"Silver-" The single would that she managed to say came out ragged and weak, her throat choked by her own hammering heart. This tactic was all too familiar. It was a standard tool in Marie's box, worn from use but still as handy as ever. The older woman took pleasure in probing at others, finding the cracks within their exterior, and provoking them.

 _"Sweetheart, I love to toy with other people,"_ she had once said some time ago, _"wrath is a very powerful and dangerous feeling. Everybody experiences it. And if I can figure out how to make my enemy angry at me, they won't be able to think straight. They fall right into my trap. Wrath pretty much does all of my bidding for me."_

And that was exactly what Marie Crossdale had done. She was shotgunning, and had figured out exactly what would trigger his rage- perhaps by theories and calculation. Or, maybe it was sheer luck. Ellie herself was blindsided by the flood of new information, almost as if she was hit in the back of the head; Silver never bothered to mention any of his family, no parents, no siblings, no extended family, nothing. She just assumed that it wasn't relevant to anything, or that something had happened and he didn't want to talk about. The sandy-haired girl understood that feeling, skating around invasive questions because she didn't feel the need to explain the pain she had felt. Very few would truly understand the circumstances of such a situation. It was entirely possible that Silver felt the same way.

However, that didn't matter in the moment- not when they were treading such a thin piece of ice... And Silver may have just fallen through. The pokeball containing one of his pokemon was trapped between his bony, pale fingers. He was just about to released the pokemon and promptly give it a command, but never had the chance. The capsule fell from his hand when a wisp of something came from behind and twisted his arm. Ellie couldn't identify the creature that Marie had sent to guard the area, probably because the darkness disguised it- or, she feared, it was a ghost pokemon that she knew very well... And despised.

Silver let out a pained grunt, his breathing labored. The unknown presence dragged him back with a madden cackle. It had to be Gengar, of course, likely holding the redhead captive with it's otherwordly telekinetic powers. Ellie watched in horror as he dropped to his knees, head drooped like a wilting flower. Gengar was likely twisting every muscle in his body. Marie wanted him to suffer because he dared to cross paths with her, dared to ally himself with a biggest traitor she had ever laid eyes on. Ellie knew this. She had grown to adopt a piece of the poacher's mentality, and could read that woman like an open book.

She had also learned to act reflexively. It took her no more than a second to reach down and pluck the pokeball from the waterlogged concrete, slipping out of the path of whatever was bound to come for her- and it only whizzed by her second later. The creature buzzed and passed through, it's translucent wings shimmering in the meager light for even less than a second. The sound caused the feeling to drain from Ellie's body, her limbs growing cold and useless as she leaned against the wall. She was out of the light breath and coated herself in near-pitch blackness. However, it wouldn't hide her forever.

After shoving Silver's pokeball in her bag, Ellie spared at glance at her companion. He had been dragged into the dark, but she could hear the grunts of agony and struggling; he was trying, but would ultimately fail against such a powerful ghost- unless she did something about it. Her numb and trembling hand dug into her bag, grasping the first pokeball in her lineup. It only took one flash in the veil of shadows for the Scizor to locate his target. The girl heard it charge forward, but was met with a blast of flames that gave light to the area for a just a second- bathing her attacker in a scorching fire. The bug and steel type let out a ear-splitting shriek of pain that gave Ellie indescribable satisfaction. Even with rain lowering the power of her Delphox's fire, the pokemon's crippling weakness to the stream of flames was enough to take it out.

Karma was a bitch.

Ellie could see the vague shape of her mother under the alley's lamp light, clutching a pokeball as she returned the fainted Scizor. "Well, at least I taught you something. But that was dumb luck," the woman commented venomously. The trainer's gray eyes focused on Silver's general location, and another flash lit her up like a beacon; Ellie had released another pokemon, a sly Umbreon that refuse to let its rings glow when she assessed the situation. "Autumn, stay to the wall." She wouldn't let Marie's comment get to her. There was too much at stake and little room for error. Another flash within the dimness of the alley indicated that her mother was plotting her next moves, perhaps to compensate for any low estimations that could have been made.

"Torrent, Hydro Pump at the Delphox. There!" Only an instant later did the shrieks of the fox pokemon fill her ears, even if she couldn't see properly. The cold rain was hammering against her body, clouding her vision- even if her glasses weren't present- and suffocating her. The only thing that could be seen was the ghost of a shimmer where the Greninja had been a moment ago; it was gone as soon as it came, and the water type was lost within the shadows. Ellie returned her Delphox to her pokeball and shoved it into her bag, before slipping through the darkness. Her Umbreon lingered close by and awaited her trainer's command.

It never came. Instead, Marie's worn and rasping voice pierced the air so that her own pokemon could hear. "Again, Torrent. You know your next target!" The rest of the sounds, including the static of the rain, were drowned out when she felt the rush of water strike her. The force had sent the girl back and her body met the ground. It wasn't like she could see or hear much in the conditions before, but now there was nothingness- nothing in her vision but pain. "Spikes, my friend, just like I taught you..." At least, that was what Ellie thought she heard; her head was pounding and everything was muffled. A soft clang against the concrete came, but was soon replaced by a short and weak scream. Her ivory-toned skin was sliced by the razor-like end of the spike, down her shoulder- across her midsection, then down her leg. Ellie could feel the warmth of the sticky fluid that poured over the fresh wound.

They stung from the force of the rain, but the blood was washed away as it came.

The next string of events passed by without much notice to the young woman, who remained limp on the alleyway concrete. The storm had eventually passed and the clouds had moved on their way. However, night had engulfed the region at that point in time, leaving the practically-unconscious trainer in darkness still. A brief flash of red and white, blackness returning for what felt like an eternity- and then, a soft light had flooded her incredibly foggy vision. Maybe she had actually died.

Vague shapes were present that debunked this thought, however: the fuzzy silhouettes of two humans, a white light that hung and above and cast shadows over their leaning forms. She could hear them talking, although it was muddled as she returned to a state of consciousness. "She's supposed to live. That was what the nurse said." One voice was masculine and familiar; if only she could think straight and put the pieces together.

The other was a feminine voice that was completely unfamiliar, higher in pitch with a touch of pep. "I still can't believe that all of this actually happened to you guys."

"Believe it. I know, it's one hell of a ride from start to finish."

"You're telling me! And they didn't even catch that woman, right?"

"Unfortunately, no. She had a flying pokemon, I think, and escaped that way."

"Do you... Think she's gonna come back?"

"No, it's probably too risky. If I was a criminal and I was nearly caught, I wouldn't be taking my chances. In fact, I'd probably be fleeing the region as quickly as I can."

"Oh, hey! I think she's waking up..." The shorter silhouette leaned in closer. Her vision finally cleared enough to make out her features. It was a young woman- or least Ellie thought that she was, but she looked kind of young and childish. Maybe it was just the softness of her doll-like features and smiling pink lips, or it was the energetic glimmer within her doeish brown eyes; they possessed a certain warmth that couldn't be fully described. Her curled hair was a light shade chocolate brown, much like her eyes, and pulled into neat pigtails held by little pink hair ties. Her clothing was an indication that she was older: a bright red button blouse with a large bow at the neck, but it was certainly in more mature taste. A woman's shirt. She was also wearing a big white hat with a red ribbon, which was kind of strange. "Hey there, how are you feeling?" The stranger's voice, while definitely girlish, had a certain comforting softness to it.

"Hey, I know that you like hovering over injured things. But come on, give her some space." Ellie's pale eyes flickered in the direction of the more familiar voice, recognizing Silver almost immediately. It was easy for anyone to see that he had gotten his fair share of ware from whatever happened before; her memory was rather foggy at the moment. The same black jacket that he always wore was ripped messily along the shoulder and she could catch of glimpse of white bandaging underneath; that was all to be seen, but who knew what else was wrapped in the same clean bandages? There was also a heavy bruise present on the lower left side of his face, his normally-porcelain skin a dark shade of purple.

The brown-haired girl spoke up again. "Oh, fine. Sorry!" She took a few steps and folded her hands together.

"...How are you feeling?" Silver gained her attention again with the question, placing a hand on his hip like he had done many times before; all of those times, Ellie had wanted to slap him into next year. It was normally a pose that displayed his arrogance. However, she knew that was not the case the this time and was just relieved that he survived. It was rather unclear what his gestures were trying to convey, but perhaps he was trying to keep a natural appearance? It was only a guess.

Ellie considered the matter for a moment, but she wasn't in any pain. There was an IV attached to her right hand, so she could only guess that she was on pain medication of some type. "Fine, I'm fine." Her voice was nothing higher than a mumble. But, she was still attempting to pull herself completely together.

"That's good!" The stranger's smile grew upon hearing her answer. "We were really worried, because you were out for a awhile..."

"How long?"

"Like- two days," the pigtailed-trainer responded with a light shrug. Her cocoa-colored eyes appeared to light up with some kind of realization. "Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Lyra, a close friend of Silver's."

"Uh, nice to meet you-" She stopped mid-sentence, blinking softly as Lyra's statement was finally processed. "T-two days?! I was out that long?"

Silver had spoken up before Lyra could answer. "Well, I was in for a day for so. They let me go because my injuries weren't as severe." The redhead paused in the middle of his explanation, eyes flickering to the ceiling for a moment; there was a glint of thoughtfulness within them, and his attention was focused on Ellie again. "Do you remember anything that happened?"

"I remember getting attacked by her Greninja, but that's it."

He gave a slight nod, and proceeded to explain the details. "Yes, that happened. He was using a couple of spikes, and he was cutting you up like a holiday ham... According to the nurse, you were lucky that they weren't all that big. If they were bigger, then he probably would have killed you. Your Umbreon managed to defeat her Gengar, and I was free. And when I saw what was happening, I sent my Alakazam to disarm Marie... And then I was about to send my Magnezone after Greninja- except that he actually got me before I had the chance... But apparently, someone who lived in an apartment above the fight called the police because they heard what was going on. Long story short, they ended up breaking the scene before things got uglier. Your mother took her pokemon and fled."

"Oh..." Ellie's response was hushed, as if she was astounded by the results of their encounter. That was partially true. But, she was also overwhelmed by this wave of emotion- something almost indescribable and extremely potent. She wasn't sure if that apparent in anyway, even if she attempted to disguise her feelings, and just continued on the conversation. "Well, at least you're fine... What about Eclipse? What happened to her?"

"They found her in an abandoned apartment nearby. A strong Jolteon was guarding her, and she was tangled in a metal net. She's in the pokemon infirmary, and she's fine."

Well, at least there was some fragment of a silver lining to look at in this situation. They had all escaped this catastrophe intact, her pokemon was recovered, and Marie was gone- likely fleeing the country as they spoke. Her mother had once informed her of escape tactics if either one of them were ever caught, and leaving the region that they were identified in was the priority. Her dry lips were parted, ready to speak when a light-hearted jingled sounded along with a buzzing.

The pocket of Lyra's navy shorts was vibrating, the brunette digging into it out a cellphone covered in a red rubber case. "Oh, it's Ethan. I should probably take this. I'll be back." With that, she left the room and shut the bright white door softly behind her.

And then, that feeling loomed upon her again. It was difficult to contain, and Ellie didn't have the faintest clue as to why. Her eyes lingered on the door for a moments, falling to the polished white floor- then on the soothing blue walls, before returning to Silver. "...Honest- Let me be honest with you... I just- I feel so pathetic right now... I couldn't even solve a problem that I got myself into, I dragged you into it, almost got our pokemon killed... It's my fault, because I just let everything go and I gave into my father's demands even though he was just using me. I took myself broke, and I got desperate... And everyone paid for it in the end..." Her fingers gently brushed the plush white fabric of the robe that she was currently wearing; bandages were, without a doubt, hiding underneath. She didn't even want to look at them. "I'm not even strong enough to protect what matters to me. I'm weak-willed, and just weak in general."

A heavy silence blanketed the pristine infirmary room, the atmosphere thick and suffocating. Regret instantly struck the girl and her eyes fell to the floor once again. She shouldn't have said anything, because Silver would not have known how to react to such a statement. He wasn't the sympathetic type. Surely, he wouldn't have anything to say on the matter. Ellie found herself fiddling with the blanket that covered her in bed. It was rather soft and possessed a comforting type of warmth. It was why she enjoyed sleeping with large, heavy blankets at night whenever possible. She always slept better.

The silence was broken a few moments later, Silver speaking up sharply. "What the hell are you talking about?" His lips were creased into a frown, crisp gray eyes narrowed upon hearing her words. Silver crossed his arms, gaze never leaving his friend. "After all of the shit that you went through, which I don't know everything in detail. But I have the general idea, along with helping you survive your crackpot of a mother. I wouldn't say that you're weak by any means... Yes, you made some horrible decisions-"

"Gee, thanks."

"I wasn't done. You made terrible decisions, but you did take responsibility for them. You didn't try to blame someone else or weasel your way out. Considering what you were going up against, that's for from being pathetic."

One of the traits that Ellie came to respect Silver for was his honesty, which often came in the form of sheer bluntness, but he would always tell someone how he actually felt about them- if they were truly capable, or just an idiot. Hearing this from him was somewhat reassuring, but the remorse for her actions was still clinging to her. Even if the sandy-haired trainer attempted to shake it away, the claws of guilt were buried deep within her skin. "Thanks... But I still think that I need to work to become stronger. Physically, and emotionally. I try so hard not to be a burden on other people, but it still seems to end up happening."

"You're not a burden," Silver replied, his expression possessing an air of neutrality as usual. "But everyone can work to be become stronger."


	8. 8- Silver

Now that the life-threatening storm of a situation had blown over, he would have preferred to have been left alone for the most part. But apparently, that was simply too much to ask for. The following days consisted of nothing but answering questions for officers or reporters; the answers varied, depending on who was asking. Of course, Silver needed to be truthful with the police. They were only doing their job and attempting to track down one of the most wanted criminals in the modern day. They would often come around when both Ellie and him were together, mainly when Silver was staying with his friend in the hospital; the only information that could be given was nothing all that new. The majority of the vital answers consisted of "I'm not sure" or "I don't know, but this may help you instead". It never did.

The other questioners that came by were invasive reporters that had no purpose other than to collect the next hot scoop, another dramatic story that would end up exaggerated to the highest possible degree. The redhead simply knew better than to give them anything, and found himself irritated with chasing them out- especially if they were hovering around Ellie. In fact, he hated that the most. They too were only doing their job, but that job was to push newspapers and magazines- to convince the world that the paper press wasn't dying a slow, suffocating death. Either that, or they were desperate to boost the views of their ridiculously illegitimate article websites. Both were equally-despised by Silver.

It had been quite awhile before Ellie was even released from the hospital, and Silver often came around to visit; sometimes Ethan or Lyra would come as well, but it was mainly him that set aside his obligations to see her. He had tried to convince himself that he didn't- couldn't possibly care about the girl all _that_ much... But that was obviously a lie so ridiculous that even he couldn't deny the truth. Lyra simply explained the nature of close friendship and caring about people on a deeper level like she had done a few times before. She even mentioned that Silver obviously cared about Ethan and her as well. He had come to accept that some time ago, having remained friends with both of them for years. But eventually, the day where Ellie could leave had arrived and Silver had offered to remain with her- somewhat hesitantly, or at least he attempted to sound hesitant.

The following weeks consisted mostly of easy training and relaxing in New Bark Town; both Ethan and Lyra had offered the two a place to stay for the time being, Ellie remaining at Lyra's home while Silver stayed with Ethan. It was alright, he concluded, though Ethan's energetic and upbeat nature could definitely grind on his nerves like rough sandpaper. Today just seemed to be one of those days.

"We'll be heading to Ecruteak City. She mentioned that she always wanted to go there," the silver-eyed trainer explained, his bony fingers securing the shiny steel gray buttons on his coat- the same black coat that he always wore after outgrowing his previous one. Ellie, apparently, had basic knowledge on clothing repair and had sewn up the large rip in the shoulder. Silver could have bought a new coat, if he actually needed to, but he was rather fond of this one.

"Dude, I gotta ask. Me and Lyra have been really curious about something," Ethan spoke up as he laid on the spare bed that Silver was borrowing, partially hanging off the edge upside down. His tanned arms draped to the floor where his fallen cap rested. "Are you and Ellie- like, a thing?" Ethan was also knowing for being very forward with his questions. There was no such thing as beating around the bush with him. He had always been like this, though he tended to be more on the ignorant side when it came to knowing how invasive his questions could be.

This question, however, definitely blindsided Silver to a degree that he couldn't even properly describe. "No, we're not. Why would you even ask something so ridiculous?" His eyes narrowed to crisp gray slits, lips pulled into a tight frown. Even though he was annoyed by the raven-haired trainer's prying, he was genuinely curious as to why Ethan or Lyra even considered that to be a possibility. "Just because we hang out a lot, that doesn't mean we're even interested in eachother."

"I know, I know. I just thought that it was possible and wanted to ask. You've never really been that interested in spending time with a girl before, and you said a few times that you're not gay. I mean, you've had some offers from some other really pretty girls, but you never seemed interested in any of 'em. I just wanna understand this a little better."

Perhaps, his question wasn't as shallow as Silver originally assumed. His friend and rival was not much of a deep thinker, so he had a suspicion that Lyra had done most of the thinking already; this was really her idea. He was absolutely sure of that. Still, Ethan did have a point. There was never actually a time in Silver's life where he considered anyone to be attractive, male or female. And, it was something that he just never thought about when he was younger- the time when Ethan and Lyra were also stumbling through puberty. They were pointing out who they considered to be cute or hot, but Silver would just shrug. 'Whatever', he would say. It never mattered to him, though he came to know that a romantic relationship of some kind sounded nice to him. That was as far as it ever went. After Silver had matured more, he had actually received offers of dates and the like from various trainers, though he grew uncomfortable with the flirting and turned them all down. "I don't think I've ever been attracted to anyone."

"No one?"

"No, but I might date someone eventually. Someone I know well... Anyway, I don't have time for this meaningless chitchat, so I'm leaving." And Silver did just that, placing his glasses on his face and stepping out of the room.

Despite the fact that it was growing colder as winter drew closer, Ecruteak City was still alive and flourishing. The evening sky was just beginning to set in for the time being, soon to be replaced by the dark veil of nighttime, the soft glow of the lantern lights becoming apparent on the various streets. This place, while equally popular, was much quieter than the bustling and modern Goldenrod City; it was always incredibly serene, but also more genuine. There was always a element present in Goldenrod that was... Artificial. That was never to be felt here. Clusters of people and pokemon still scurried to and fro, but the space was not crowded and no one seemed rushed by anything- as if they stepped back and simply appreciated life with nowhere important to be. It was the perfect place to go if someone wanted to relax, provided they stay away from certain parts of the city where festivals often took place.

"What a beautiful city. Johto really is a nice place, isn't it?" She commented, holding onto the large pokemon plush in her arms; the doll mimicked the form of the mythical pokemon, Suicune."You said that they're having fireworks tonight?"

"That's right. Fireworks have always been very popular here, and they've become one of Ecruteak's tourist gimmicks. But still, they're very nice- supposedly some of the best in the world. I've seen them a few times," Silver explained with a nod, shoving his hands into his pockets. He was always one to get cold easily, which was why he almost always wore a jacket. "We should go find a place to watch, and possibly find something hot to drink. There are usually vendors selling drinks and treats on nights like these." The red-haired trainer waited for her to reply, but his friend had fallen silent. "Is something the matter?"

"I was just thinking about something."

"Is it important?"

"Mm, not really. I mean, I know that my birthday was like a month ago or something, but you really don't have to do this for me. You know... N-not that I don't appreciate it or anything- because I really do. It's just..." Her pale eyes, which were previously focused on Silver, fell to ground as she spoke. "I guess... I'm still not used to people doing nice things for me..." Her voice grew to be nothing more than a mumble. "But thank you..."

Initially, Silver didn't know what kind of response to give. One thing that he was not accustomed to was someone thanking him for something. He wasn't sure why, but it was always awkward for him to accept gratitude on the rare occasion that he did something relatively kind. Ellie had thanked him before, sure, but it was still as awkward now as it was back then. "Back when I was a child... I never celebrated my birthday. I never did anything. I didn't have any friends, and my father didn't care about that; he didn't have to throw me a party or buy me a cake. Some years, he didn't even get me a present- not that the presents were any good. But Ethan and Lyra... They found out when my birthday was before I turned twelve, and they threw a small party. It was... Nice." He gave light shrug.

"So, you think it would be nice to do something for me?" Ellie suggested, finishing his statement. "I never celebrated my birthday either, because I also didn't have friends. That's a long story. But anyway, it's true then..? Giovanni is your father?"

His gaze flickered around the area, noticing that they arrived in one of the busier squares, and he gestured to an empty bench nearby. Silver was aware that he would have to explain himself eventually, even if he did hope the subject of his family would never come around; it always seemed to surface and make itself known with every person he became relatively close with. That number was actually rather small, yet this conversation was equally-excruciating everytime he had gone through it- and it was seemingly-inevitable. "This should be a good place to sit, far enough away so no one will bother us. We'll still be able to see everything." With that, he sat down and crossed one leg over the other. His eyes were trained on his companion expectantly, waiting until she also sat down to continue. "Yes, I am his son."

"I've seen pictures of him," the sandy-haired girl spoke up, "you don't look anything like him. I never would've guessed if she didn't say anything."

"Thank Arceus I look nothing like him." If he did resemble his father in any way, Silver would surely do whatever it would have taken to disguise this: Hair dye, contacts, anything that could be changed reaosnably. "He didn't see me as anything but an asset, someone who he could train to carry on the 'Rocket Empire'. Sometimes, I think the staff that occasionally took care of me as a child loved me more than he did. And when my father fell all those years ago- to someone who just a kid back then, he was so ashamed that he just abandoned everything... Including me." Silver's eyes never lifted from the ground, as he couldn't bare to look at anyone. Recounting this just clawed at his heart so deeply. "My mother... I don't remember much about her. She was kidnapped for ransom when I was very young. My family is- was very rich, and that went back many generations. Each one just contributed to its wealth...My mother was presumed dead, but her body was never actually found..."

And with that very explanation, a thick blanket of silence had fallen over the two; it was familiar, and just as suffocating as prior experiences. Silver almost regretted speaking about this matter, and felt his heart pound when Ellie had replied. "I'm sorry to hear about what happened..." She wrinkled her nose in contemplation, looking up at him. "Ugh- sorry... I'm not good at this... But, just know that what happened to you in past doesn't define who you are now. You can't choose who your parents are, but you can choose who you become. Believe me, I had to learn that the hard way. My dad was an asshole, but that's a story for another time. Just know that I'm not a position to judge." A light a smile found its way to her lips, placing a shaking hand on his shoulder. "Life might not be fair, but ya know... You still have people that care about you."

Just as the silence had come to visit, it was chased away again by the cracking of fireworks. Silver's head snapped in the direction of the sound and saw the night sky flecked with glimmering shades of the rainbow. He had wanted to say something, but decided not to in that moment; the redhead could see how entranced his friend was by the beauty of Ecruteak's display. Instead, he made his way to a nearby vendor to buy some hot tea- along with two pastries. The remainder of that night was spent in silence, with only the excited murmurs of the crowd and the cracking fireworks to fill the absence of sound.

The fact that Ethan and Lyra were waiting with a birthday cake when the two returned had nearly given Silver a heart attack. He was quite sure that Ellie felt the same way.

Silver clutched the piece of paper between his fingers, a shimmering pink ticket with the name of a ship ( The Wonder ), and the words 'To Hau'oli City, Alola' printed in black lettering across it. Only a moment later did his pale eyes focus on the girl before him, hand clutching the ticket extended towards her. "Here, you'll need this."

"Thanks." Ellie gently grasped the slip and placed it in her pocket, lips pushed into a light smile. There was a tinge of sadness within her features, a longing of some kind- Silver could say with certainty. He could also state, if asked, that he did share that feeling to an extent. He could never openly state that he would miss her presence, however; he had a feeling that Ellie was already aware of the things that were passing through his mind. "I guess this is it. I'll be seeing Sebastian at the marina once I get there. And... I guess you'll be heading off to pursue your longtime dream."

"I will be." Silver considered dropping the matter, abandoning his desire just to go with her. However, he had already been absent from Johto for quite a few years before; many didn't know that he had temporarily abandoned his desire to be Champion after being defeated by the league once. Silver had never actually given it up, but made a detour to Kanto- and then Kalos to collect gym badges. He needed that time to consider the circumstances of situation and come to a decision about his ambitions. The redhead now knew what he wanted, but he desired to become the strongest trainer in Johto for himself. "I... I hope that you find what you've been looking for."

"I hope so too... By the way, I have something to give you." The girl reached into her ragged shoulder bag, pulling something up and holding out the object for him to take. It was small, only a bit bigger than her palm, and took the shape of a claw.

Silver was quick to pluck the item from her hand, turning it over once. He couldn't believe it. "A razor claw... For Sneasel."

Ellie's smile grew just a bit, and the girl nodded. "Yeah. I lost a battle to some cocky kid, and he gave it me because he didn't have enough money to pay me. I was gonna give it to you earlier, but I couldn't find it in my bag. I thought I lost it, but it was just stuck in the lining. There's a hole, but that's not really surprising. That's not the big thing I wanted you to have though." Her hand dived into the depths of her old bag and pulled out a different item- this time, an oddly-colored pokeball that resembled the one her Delphox resided in. "This is a Premier Ball, a ball that is very popular in the Kalos region. They're normally given to celebrate something... And I think actually living to see my nineteenth birthday is something worth celebrating, huh?"

"I think you're intending to celebrate our friendship our whatever, but you're not good at the 'feelings' part of this, are you?" Silver couldn't blame her, because he face a similar issue; at least, he wasn't in a position to judge her. It was actually kind of amusing. He took the pokeball and clutched it with one hand, thumb gently brushing the release mechanism. It was primarily white with a red seal. The capsule expanded in size with a singe tap on the release mechanism; one more opened pokeball with dazzling gold sparks, releasing the pokemon inside. This pokemon was all too familiar, small and cinnamon brown with a cream-color mane around its neck. A pair of big dark eyes focused on Silver, and Eevee let out a giddy chirp; this indicated that he recognized his new trainer.

"Bingo."

Silver was simultaneously confused and astounded. Eevees were rare in Johto, and he had only seen a few of its evolutions in person- Ellie's Umbreon being one of them. But then again, she came from a region where they were much more common. "Why are you giving me this?"

"Because... I'm grateful for everything you've done, and I really suck at the 'sappy words' part. So, I think this gets the point across. I spent hours tracking this guy down for you, and I know you'll raise him well. I'm excited to see what he evolves into." The girl gave a simple shrug.

He was at a loss for words, as if every thought he could have elaborated on was stolen from him in a moment. It was absolutely astounding, both because the gifts were phenomenal and he couldn't believe that Ellie could even get her hands on them. She really was a peculiar one. "Well, thank you. But what do you by 'you can't wait to see?'" Was she going to return at some point? It was something that was never discussed.

"What I mean," the sandy-haired trainer explained, "is that I think we'll be seeing eachother again relatively soon. I know this isn't goodbye, so I'm not saying that-" She was interrupted by the announcements, which stated that all passengers to board the Wonder had five minutes to do so. Ellie turned her attention back to Silver and gave one more slow nod. "I should go." With that, she started off towards the ship. Silver's eyes remained on her figure while absently returning the Eevee to his pokeball. That was it, he thought, she would be gone...

Except that Ellie had turned one again and ran back, throwing her arms around him and hugging tightly. "What the-" It was certainly a surprise and Silver resisted the urge to shove his friend away, instead hesitantly placing his arms around her. That reluctance has almost immediately faded away upon feeling the warmth of the embrace, and Silver had to admit that he didn't mind this at all.

"I won't say goodbye... Instead, I'll say good luck." The hug just hadn't lasted long enough, and it seemed that Ellie had pulled away only a second late. Without another word, she turned and made a beeline for the Wonder. Silver couldn't tear his gaze away until she was out of sight.


	9. 9- Ellie

An expression of horror had crossed the Umbreon's eyes as the Alolan Sandlash had charged forward, rigid hooked claws radiating with energy. It had only taken one more hit- just one to knock the dark type down; and this time, Fate had not struggled to her feet. X-Scissor was a truly powerful attack, even to a defensive pokemon like herself. However, the individual that felt the true horror was Fate's trainer. "Well... I guess that's it then..." It was as if her rapidly-hammering heart was hit one too many times and had shattered into a million fragments. A shaking hand clutched the Luxury Ball and returned the tired pokemon, and Ellie pried her eyes away from the battlefield to face her opponent. It was a thin girl just a bit shorter than her, fair skinned with charcoal black hair styled in a neat bob; it reminded Ellie of her cousin, who was Arceus-knows-where at the moment. A pair of smoky gray eyes shined enthusiastically, and the trainer couldn't help but cheer her Sandslash on for a job well done. "Yeah, that was great! Awesome job, Frosloo!" The trainer returned her own pokemon and stepped towards the center of the ring; Ellie had forced her lead-heavy legs to do the same. "That was a great battle! You almost won, so I can tell that you're a really great trainer!" She beamed and took Ellie's clammy hand, giving it an ecstatic shake before letting go and bidding her farewell.

Trudging down the stairs of the Alolan Pokemon League was one the most difficult things Elizabeth Crossdale had ever done.

No, it was not in her nature to be anything beyond mildly irritated over loosing a pokemon battle; losing was apart of the game, and it was just an inevitability that had to be faced. However, she couldn't help but let the disappointment take hold of her. She could even feel a few tears prick the corners of her eyes. However, Ellie kept her composure while exiting the building; there was still some dignity that she wanted to hold onto. It wasn't until she was halfway down Mount Lanakila did she feel the tears slide down her rosy cheeks, stinging more than the cold winds ever could. "I know there's no dishonor in losing... But dammit, I was too close... I was too close to finally achieving something in my life..." Her breathes were exhausted and ragged throughout her trip down to the summit, pulling on her neutral exterior once she felt the warm afternoon rays of the Alolan sun on her skin.

They were probably wondering how she had done, and were probably prepared to celebrate her victory; Ellie knew in the back of her mind that she wasn't ready to face her friends. She made one quick visit to the Pokemon Center to heal her team to fighting condition again, but exited as quickly as she entered- refusing to look at anyone. "What am I missing? I thought that after... Everything that happened, I'd be strong enough to become a Champion. But no, I guess not... I'm still broke, my home is falling apart and there's nothing that I can do about it." Another shaking breath escape her lips while the girl paused at the side of the Pokemon Center, hands clenched into tight and trembling fists. First the disappointment, and then the anger- the rage that rarely surfaced.

 _WHAM!_

And then it was gone, like the switch had been flipped and the wrath she had felt was drained her from her body. Instead, she felt quite a bit of pain- hissing and cradling her right hand, which had just met the cement wall of the Pokemon Center; that would most definitely leave a bruise. "Why the fuck did I just do that..." Whatever. It was done with already. Done and over, and now it was time to take the ultimate walk of shame.

"I can't do this... I just can't do this..."


	10. 10- Silver

They'd probably leave him alone by this point in time, and would never suspect that he would even set foot in a place like this. Silver's eyes shifted to take in the extent of the small space, a tea shop located on the outskirts of Maile City on Ula'Ula Island. It was a humble space with dark wooden shelves displaying the various types of tea, imported from regions located around the world; he took notice, however, that a large portion of the products were imported from Johto. That only made sense, especially since this entire city was designed and constructed by Johtoian people from what he heard. The redhead never imagined himself visiting this region in particular and he wasn't the biggest fan. It was beautiful, sure, but also very warm most of the time. Supposedly, it was still winter... Silver found that difficult to believe, since it hardly felt like that to him. The weather didn't even allow him to wear the coat that he was quite fond of and was hardly ever seen without. He could even go as far as to say that he felt... Naked without it. Even so, he knew this better than anyone: Things just changed, and they could change for inexplicable reasons.

What made his situation a bit more... Complicated, for not wishing to a use a more hateful term at this time, was the fact that his two friends had decided to tag along on what was intended to be a strictly-business trip. Ethan and Lyra pestered their companion for more than a week before Silver had ended up caving into their wishes, and he was certainly regretting it now. All they wanted to do was prance around, sight-see, goof off... How ridiculous. They argued that he needed a break from everything, and that a vacation would be a good idea- except it was the very same argument that had been used against him time and time again. It was a like a broken record that he couldn't change. He found himself feeling a bit frustrated just thinking about it.

"I have things to do, and they keep trying to distract me..." Silver's word left his lips in a low mutter, quiet enough that the average patron wouldn't be able to hear him. "What am I even doing here?" It was kind of ironic: Ethan and Lyra were continually trying to distract him, but here he was in some tea shop doing nothing productive anyway; he didn't even drink tea that much... Silver preferred the smoky bitterness of coffee. Who did drink tea? Did Ellie mention something about liking the various types of tea that some guy from the Unova region sent her frequently. Apparently, despite not being incredibly friendly, that girl possessed quite a few connections... It was amazing what a little bit of politeness could accomplish, honestly. But what kind of tea did she even like? ...Why was Silver even thinking about such a thing out of the blue? He hadn't seen Ellie in months anyway. Still... He couldn't help but wonder what she was up to, if she was still training... If she was taking care of herself properly...

Silver took of a box of tea bags off of the shelf and slowly flipped it between his fingers, reading over the label printed across it in black lettering. It was some kind of green tea, imported from Johto, with mint and matcha... Whatever that was. He couldn't help but find himself falling out of reality and immersed within his own thoughts- so much so that he hadn't noticed someone bump into him at first. The tea box had slipped from his hands and clattered to the floor, and a very irritated trainer's eyes flickered in the direction of the apologizing woman.

"Oh, sorry 'bout that. I didn't see you there..." She reached down and picked up the box of tea of that he dropped, holding it out for him. Silver was just about to give some snappy remark, but he refrained from doing so; he knew it was the wrong thing to do... Old habits died hard. Instead, confusion had doused his anger since this woman seemed to looking him in a very curious manner. The stranger was rather tall for a woman, he noticed, though still didn't surpass his own height; she was rather thin and dainty-looking regardless. She appeared to be somewhere in her early fourties, judging by the subtle age lines in her doll-like face, though it was difficult to know for sure: Her curtain of thick, somewhat wavy hair was completely white. Even her eyes were a colorless silver much like his own. How strange... The last time he had seen eyes like that, was when he was with Ellie some time ago.

There appeared to be a glimmer within her gaze, indicating some kind of unidentifiable emotion. Silver was about to ask her if there was something that she needed- except the words she had spoken completely blindsided him. "...K-Kamon..?"

"How... How do you know... My name?" No one had ever addressed him that way, not Ethan or Lyra, not anyone that he knew. The name 'Kamon' had died the day that he left his old life behind for the life of a trainer; he was only a child then. But even his trainer ID held the name 'Silver', not his birth name. The typical expression of slight scorn had left his face almost immediately, replacing it with a look of disbelief. He was attempting to piece it together, but his mind was reeling too quickly.

"I..." The woman placed the tea box back on the shelf, her eyes never leaving the red-haired trainer. She took a step forward and a small, shaky hand reached out to carefully brush his cheek. "You don't remember me... Do you? I don't blame you. You were so young, and your father probably didn't show you any pictures..."

"What are you talking about?" Perhaps if Silver was in his right state of mind in this moment, he would have shoved the woman's had away almost immediately. He just wanted to her to get to the point. He wanted to know- wanted to know why there was something so utterly familiar about her.

The stranger's small pink lips curled into a faint smile, pulling her hand away. "That has to be it. I thought I had the wrong person for a moment, but no. Your eyes... Like I said, you probably don't remember me but... I'm your mother."

That didn't make a single fragment of sense, not to him. His mother was gone ages ago and he was left in the care of his father... Except, she did refer to him by his birth name. His thoughts were contradictory beyond belief and Silver had not the faintest clue of what to believe. "No, no- you have to have mistaken me for someone else. My mother died when I was kid, and I hardly remember her..."

"Did she?"

"Yes... She disappeared, but no one could find her. She had to have been dead. Besides... My mother's hair was red. I remember that."

"Really? Was your mother's name Evelyn, by chance?" The woman asked calmly, gaze never tearing away from his.

"So, it is you... But how? And why?" As if a switch had been flipped within his mind, Silver's disbelief had crumbled into nothing and a new emotion emerged; it was something powerful, but foreign. He had never experienced anything like it. The gray-eyed trainer wanted to be happy, but another part of him was angry with her. He wanted to question her so deeply, along with having the urge to punch her.

"I know, it's been a very long time... Just give me a chance to explain myself, Kamon. I promise that you'll understand."

"Fine... But don't call me Kamon."

A spark of befuddlement could be seen within her expression, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. "You don't me to call you by your name... Well, what do you want me to call you then?"

"Call me Silver."

Silver couldn't believe that an event within his life could be anymore surreal; he thought for sure that having to fight a homicidal pokemon poacher stronger than a Champion had topped literally everything else. But even so, this was not something to immediately dismiss and he desperately wanted to know: Was this actually his mother, standing with him in the flesh? A few more unimportant words had been exchanged in the shop and Evelyn had to make her purchases before they could leave for somewhere more private. Silver had bought the green tea that he was looking at, though didn't think he would drink it himself. It was only a very small and quiet stroll through the very Johto-like city until they reached their destination.

"The Malie Gardens... It's gotta be one of my favorite spots in Alola. Johto immigrants designed and built it based off of their own culture, and it's normally a very popular tourist spot. Except, it's time for dinner so there won't be many people around," Evelyn explained as they crossed the small golden bridge. The Alolan sun was sinking over the horzion, painting the remainder of the daytime sky in bright hues of orange; it would be a hot day tomorrow, Silver reminded himself, indicating that winter was coming to an end. The aroma of various Johto-native flowers permeated the air, and the faint sound of rustling could be heard from the patches of tall grass. He had taken notice of the various structures and pavilions placed throughout the land... It really did give him this sense of his home region. That could easily explain why Evelyn was rather fond of this place.

Then again, Silver could be getting far ahead of himself with such an assumption. He needed to hear the entire story.

"Look, if you really are my mother... Then what happened? How did you end up escaping your kidnappers? And why didn't you ever come back?" It was rather obvious that his disbelief was not completely gone, and the redhead wouldn't let such a feeling of suspicion go until he knew everything; only then could he make a proper judgement. If this woman was actually his mother, then she would know exactly what he was talking about. Silver's words would seem strange to anyone else. The two had stopped at one of the pavilions and sat down underneath of the wooden canopy. Silver couldn't help watch intently as Evelyn folded her thin hands in her lap, her chest rising as she took a deep breath.

"Silver... Before I go telling you what happened... I just want you know that, sometimes, people have to make decisions that seem selfish. But that doesn't mean that they don't care at all," the white-haired woman explained, colorless eyes flickering from the lush grass beneath her feet to look at her son. "You promise to listen carefully?"

There was no doubt that this was statement was a bit puzzling, as well as being suspicious. Still... He decided to that he would give her the opportunity to elaborate. "Fine."

"I'm sure that you know how your father could be... I don't even understand why I fell in love with him after I came to Johto. I was his rival, actually, but we were friends and whatnot. The polish... It just wore off and I could start seeing the person Giovanni was underneath, and I was scared. His talk about creating a pokemon powerful enough to challenge the pokemon in legends and myths... That he'd stop at nothing to get his hands on the Master Ball. I couldn't take it anymore. So... I took some money and hired a friend of mine. He was already in a gang, by the way. I met him before I met your father. But, I paid him to kidnap both me and you... It's just that we didn't have the chance to get to you, because someone had called security. I had no choice..." Her fingers were fiddling with a silver pendant strung around her neck. "I had to leave without you, and I came here to live. I thought I could come back to get you... But I never got the chance. Some years later, I was to but I found out that Giovanni abandoned you... That it was too late. I thought you were gonna die out there on your own with no pokemon..."

Silver remained silent despite the fact that Evelyn had stopped speaking. It was almost as if that feeling that overcome him earlier was controlling his every movement- even the words that he had spoken. They were there, but the redhead couldn't grasp them and anything that was on his mind was simply out of reach. He watched as the woman's fingers fiddled with the oval-shaped pendant, but a very small could be heard and she carefully opened the charm; it was a locket. One the left side, there was a very small photo that resembled the person wearing the necklace: Evelyn was much younger in this photo with bright, hopeful eyes and crimson hair. On the other side was a photo of a familiar young child with pale gray eyes and short hair the same shade of red.

"But even if I wasn't there... It doesn't mean that I never stopped loving you, Kamon."


End file.
